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Wendy is too busy with all the wonderous changes in her life to present her usual Mindfulness Monday post at the moment. So, I am stepping in with a guest post for her.

I have always found great wisdom, humour and compassion in the words of Pema Chödrön. She is member of/teacher at a Shambhala Buddist community – Gampo Abbey – in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia which gives her words a special resonance with me. My paternal roots, and extended chunks of my adult life were spent in the Maritimes. No better spot for meditation, retreat, and restoration. I just returned from the South Shore of Nova Scotia. My first visit “home” in 7 years; a truly transformative experience.

So in honour of Wendy and Nova Scotia, I present Meaningful Monday as a guest host for Wendy’s wonderful Mindfulness Mondays. All quotes are from Pema Chödrön.

“When there’s a big disappointment, we don’t know if that’s the end of the story. It may be just the beginning of a great adventure.”

Like this:

I don’t usually do challenges, mainly because I know so many amazing bloggers I can never decide who to pass the challenge on to, but when Kim, from I Tripped Over a Stone, nominated me, I thought, “Quotes? Hey, that’s up my alley!” So I couldn’t say no. Kim is an amazing woman. She’s witty, smart, busy, and just happens to have fibromyalgia. She is full of knowledge that she readily shares on her blog and in a Facebook group she helps run. Follow the link above and check out her incredible blog! Thank you Kim for selecting me to participate in this challenge. So, today we’ll take a little break from Mindfulness Monday and do these quotes instead.

Here’s how this thing works:

1. Thank the person that nominated you.

2. Write one quote each day for three consecutive days (3 quotes total)

3. Explain why the quote is meaningful for you.

4. Nominate three bloggers each day to participate in the challenge

Kim changed the challenge up a bit and did all three of her quotes in one day, I think I’ll follow suit and do the same.

Here are a few of my favorite quotes.

“I believe in you.”~Christeen Calloway (my mother)

This is my favorite quote of all time because everyone needs someone who believes in them, and I always knew my mother believed in me. I specifically remember her telling me this when I was in college. I was struggling putting myself through school, working many part-time jobs and taking a full load of classes so I didn’t waste any tuition money. (You had to take at least 9 (or was it 12?) credit hours a semester to get full time tuition. Over that minimum requirement you could take more classes for the same price. So I normally took 15 – 18 credit hours per semester – that’s 5 – 6 classes.) At one point I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to finish. I was working so hard, and I had the grades to prove it, but I was getting worn down. (at one point I had 5 part-time jobs) My mother was always my champion. I called her one day just to chat and mentioned how hard things were at that moment and how I just didn’t know if I could carry on with that pace. I also mentioned how much I missed her banana pudding. That afternoon when I got back to my dorm, my mother was there waiting on me, with a big bowl of banana pudding. We had dinner together and talked and talked, like we often did. She told me how much she believed in me. She knew how hard I was working and she also knew I could handle it. It was her belief in me that pushed me forward, and the next semester I was awarded a scholarship for outstanding academics and art. I was also given a work study opportunity, so I didn’t have to have all those part-time jobs. If it had not been for my mother’s belief in me, I don’t think I would have been able to follow through and graduate with honors.

“No one has ever become poor by giving.” ~Anne Frank

I hear it all the time, “I can’t afford to give….” This simply isn’t true. “No one has ever become poor by giving.” How very true. We must remember that even the poorest of us can give without causing ourselves more hardship. We can give of our time, there are so many lonely people in this world, all you’d need to do is spend a little time with someone who needs the company, this doesn’t even have to be in person, you can reach out to someone online, you may even make a new friend. We can give a service, can you cook, sew, garden, babysit?….there are so many ways we can give simply by doing what we know, we don’t have to buy anything. We can give a smile and a compliment, has there ever been a time when a stranger smiled at you and complimented you out of the blue? How did it make you feel? A kind word can mean the world to someone, you never know, they may be going through a really rough time and your kindness helps just a little. Don’t believe that you can’t make a difference simply because you can’t give monetarily, there are many ways to give that don’t cost a penny.

“Mindfulness is simply being aware of what is happening right now without wishing it were different; enjoying the pleasant without holding on when it changes (which it will); being with the unpleasant without fearing it will always be this way (which it won’t).” ~James Baraz

How could I list my favorite quotes without including my favorite quote on mindfulness? This is one of the first quotes on mindfulness I read, and it spoke volumes to me. It was hard to imagine facing every day without wishing it were different. I admit I’m still not at that point, but I strive to be, and some days I succeed. However, I still wish things were different when I’m having bad symptoms, but I try hard to be as okay with it as I can; and I take solace in knowing that the unpleasant will not always be with me. I’m also learning how to enjoy the good times without trying to hold on too tightly. Sometimes I’m better at that than others. For example, my sister came for a visit this past week and I had so much fun I didn’t want that feeling to end. One night I made a roast chicken and we made a wish with the wishbone. My wish was that every day could be as good as that day. umm, I think I was trying to hold on to that day a little, don’t you? Luckily I wasn’t trying to hold on so tightly that it caused me pain when it was over. I am so grateful we were able to have such a good visit, and I was mostly symptom free. I must admit, I would have held on to those days if I could, but I’m grateful for today, even though I had a cluster headache earlier and I don’t feel like lifting my head now. I’m still happy. Hubby just came home, and it’s time to make brownies. 😉

If they would like to participate, I would love to read some quotes that inspire or excite or have meaning for:

We all see them, the chronically ill who are living amazing lives, even doing things above and beyond what most “normals” do. They don’t let their illnesses stop them. They thrive despite their illness. These people are supposed to be an inspiration. We are to be amazed and we’re supposed to look at them and realize, “Hey, if they can do it so can I.” (does that really work?)

There always seems to be a celebrity who has the same disease you do. As a spokesperson for our illness they are supposed to be an inspiration, after all, if they can do it, why can’t I?

Do they really inspire you? Does it give you hope? Or does it make you feel inadequate? Does it make you feel bad because you haven’t been able to do what “normals” would define as remarkable things in spite of our illness.

For me, it’s often the later. I feel inadequate because I simply cannot do the things I used to, let alone do extraordinary things that I’ve never even thought of doing.

It concerns me that people will compare me to those “inspiring” people and think that I’m exaggerating the severity of my symptoms. I’ve had well-intentioned friends and family members send me articles about someone who has Meniere’s Disease and how they are are either living amazing lives despite Meniere’s, or they were “cured”. This happened a lot when Dana White (president of the United Fighting Championship), underwent a treatment for his Meniere’s and it was a “miracle cure”. What they don’t realize is that there is more than one cause of Meniere’s, so his treatment may do nothing for me; he has Meniere’s in one ear, I have it in both. They also seem to ignore the fact that he had to go to Germany to have this procedure done….ummm, who’s going to pay for this? Not my insurance that’s for sure. and just how safe is it? After they send these messages, I wonder, do they think I’m not doing everything I can?

When we hear that someone is an inspiration, it is supposed to be a positive thing, but inspiration can be negative. You can inspire people to do bad things. Look at Charles Manson or Adolf Hitler, for example, they inspired people to do all kinds of horrible things. They were very inspirational, just not like we have been conditioned to think of the word.

The people who inspire me to try harder, to live more fully, to embrace life, and simply care more are the amazing people I meet who have chronic illnesses and can still love their life, with all it’s limitations. I’m amazed by the people who undergo many painful medical procedures and still greet each day with love. I’m positively inspired by those who are able to push through and do the everyday things, even when life is just so hard. The people who show compassion and support to others despite the fact that they get so little themselves, these are some of the people who inspire me to be the best me I can.

I’m not saying that famous people can’t be a positive inspiration, I’m simply saying that is not always the case. When I see a list of famous people who suffer from vertigo, it doesn’t inspire me to do anything. I feel compassion for them, and I often wonder exactly how much they battle with their illness behind the scenes. What are we not seeing? The phrase, “but you don’t look sick”, sure hits home when we see someone like the beautiful Selena Gomez, who has Lupus.

Then I hear things like, “Nicolas Cage suffers from vertigo all the time”. Ummm, really? All-the-time? I could believe he has disequilibrium all the time, but full blown vertigo, no way. I simply do not believe it. If he has vertigo all the time and can function as well as he does, that would be a miracle. I can believe that he may have recurring vertigo, but not constantly. I’m pretty sure I’d kill myself if I had full blown vertigo all the time.

Who inspires you to be the best you can be?

Do you get positively inspired by famous people who have your illness?

Does it make you feel inadequate when you hear that someone who has the same illness that you have has done something like run marathons, or started a successful business, or has won the “Golden Buzzer” award on America’s Got Talent, like Mandy Harvey did, who is deaf?